


Shadows Remain

by Stephanie_the_Bi



Series: Crossovers [2]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Life Is Strange (Video Game), She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018), Teen Titans (Animated Series), Tomb Raider (Video Games), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Adulthood, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Asexual Character, Bisexual Female Character, Blood and Gore, Canon Lesbian Character, Canon Lesbian Relationship, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, Gen, Heavy Angst, Illusions, Love Triangles, Mind Manipulation, Multi, Multiverse, Nightmares, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Other, Past Abuse, Past Character Death, Past Lives, Past Rape/Non-con, Pedophilia, Portals, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Psychological Trauma, Superpowers, Tags May Change, Telekinesis, Telepathic Bond, Telepathy, Teleportation, Time Travel, Time Travelling Lesbians, Triggers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-07
Updated: 2019-06-07
Packaged: 2020-02-29 07:03:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18773662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stephanie_the_Bi/pseuds/Stephanie_the_Bi
Summary: This fanfic is still in the works!This is somewhat a continuation of my previous crossover, Overexposed! Read that first then come back to read this!After Stephanie interrupts a movie night between Max, Chloe, Asami, and Korra to warn them of danger coming, they must come together and prepare for battle with Luna, the evil shadow villain out to destroy all of them. The women of the Titans and the Team try to fight Luna in the Multiverse Field, with some accidental new additions thanks to Stephanie, but the villain teleports them to her Shadow Realm, where their darkest fears are drawn out to them, forcing them to face their worst nightmares. Will they be able to overcome these illusions, or will the fear consume them before the battle even starts?





	Shadows Remain

Chapter One: Face My Fears

Chloe smiled down at Max, who was lying on her lap, enjoying the movie _Wonder Woman_. They had both been invited to Korra and Asami’s house to watch a movie together, and they excitedly agreed. Korra was lying on Asami’s lap, holding the black haired woman’s hand. The audio from the movie flooded the Avatar’s home, bringing everyone’s attention to it. A sudden crash made them all jump, but they brushed it off as the movie’s sounds.

A rush of footsteps could be heard, and Korra grabbed the remote to pause the movie, concerned. The door swung open, revealing Stephanie and Lauren. Stephanie’s clothes were slightly torn and her hair disheveled. Both of her arms rested on the door frames to keep balance, and the girls noticed her legs trembling. Lauren looked unaffected, but still shaking.

“Damn, is Cyborg secretly a beast in bed?” Chloe joked. Max nudged her disapprovingly. If Stephanie heard Chloe, she didn’t react to her ‘joke’.

“Steph, what’s up?” Korra asked.

“We need you.” Stephanie breathed out. She fell to her knees, making the other four women scared at this point. Lauren quickly held onto her friend, keeping her barely standing.

“I can teleport us.” Stephanie began explaining vaguely. “But we need to go. Now.”

“To where?” Chloe demanded.

“The Multiverse Field.” The blue-eyed girl whispered. “They’re in trouble.” Something must have clicked within Korra, because out of them all, she seemed like she understood the situation.

“Alright, let’s go.” Korra agreed. Stephanie nodded, standing completely so she could access a portal. Using her powers, she opened a portal, and the five women stepped in, apprehensive and ready to fight any danger in their way.

“What’s going on?” Max asked, scared. Chloe stood protectively in front of her, eyes searching for danger. She knew the hell they experienced a year ago, and they were far from getting over it.

“Chloe!” Stephanie shouted, running and crashing into both girls and knocking them over. They all grunted in pain from the landing.

“What the hell is with you?” Chloe hissed. She didn’t get an answer from Stephanie; instead, her eyes widened when she saw a sharp black sword-like shadow stabbing the air where they just were seconds ago. Horrified, they all looked in front of them and saw a shadow demon, but not just any demon…

“Luna.” Stephanie snarled, seemingly absolutely pissed.

“Welcome back, children.” The shadow rumbled, chuckling. She prepared a shadow sword to swing at the girls when suddenly a bolt of black power shot it, making it fade into normal shadows once again. Surprised, everyone looked over and saw Raven accompanied by Starfire. They must have entered through a portal, Stephanie realized, communicating that with the others through telepathy.

“Leave them alone.” Raven snarled. Starfire lit her starbolts in preparation to attack.

“Ah, the dirty brother killer is back.” Luna growled, narrowing her yellow eyes. The cloaked woman yelled in anger and began attacking the evil shadow with her demonic powers.

“Stephanie!” Raven called. The blue-eyed woman looked up, awaiting orders from her teammate. “Open a portal; get the Team here. We can’t handle Luna alone!”

“Got it!” Stephanie nodded, using her powers to open a blue and snow-white portal. Sweat dripped down from her forehead as she concentrated on the portal. Meanwhile, Raven, Starfire, and Korra were working together to distract Luna so she wouldn’t hurt Stephanie. Max, Chloe, and Asami stayed close to the black haired woman, unable to fight. Suddenly, the portal began emitting blue lightning-like strikes at Stephanie, making her grunt in pain. Her body became engulfed in shockwaves, forcing her to her knees. Still, her arms remained up to keep the portal open. Squeezing her eyes shut, she screamed in pain as more shocks consumed her body.

“Stephanie!” Raven shouted, turning and staring at her. In the moment of her distraction, Luna whacked her with a shadow, throwing her backwards and down to the ground.

Stephanie screeched from the shockwaves, finally falling completely onto the grass. Luckily, M’gann, Rocket, Artemis, and Zatanna all popped out of the portal just in time. Unfortunately, so did some strangers. A blonde haired woman named Adora fell out with a half-cat half-human woman, who Adora called Catra. Another pair of girls flew out, this time both of them brunettes, one with long hair and one with short hair to her shoulders. Lara and Sam, they called to each other in panic.

Stephanie fell completely to the ground, utterly exhausted from overusing her power.

Everyone stared at each other, confused, until Luna shot a shadow sword in the crowd, luckily not hitting anyone. Angry, Raven shot her power back at the demon, knocking her back. Quickly running over to Stephanie, she saw the strangers stand up and start to defend and protect Stephanie and Raven, making sure no additional shadow swords hit them.

Suddenly, Luna snarled, her voice booming all around them, making all of the girls widen their eyes in fear and surprise. Stephanie blinked open her eyes tiredly, standing with Raven, an arm around the half-demon’s neck for support. She gasped, her eyes widening.

“Move!” Stephanie screeched, pushing Raven down to avoid the onslaught of darkness heading straight towards them. All of the others tried to protect each other as well, to no avail.

“Look out!” Chloe shouted, leaping to protect her girlfriend, Max. Luna’s shadows engulfed them all into pure darkness. Starfire lit up one of her starbolts for light, though it wasn’t too bright in the never-ending shadows. Because of her power, everyone became outlined in green. Raven, knowing the extremity of the situation, quickly turned and hastily shot her power at the shadows. Her power bounced off and hit the cloaked woman instead, sending her flying backwards onto her back, grunting in pain.

“Raven!” Stephanie gasped, now standing with Starfire’s help.

“I’m alright,” the half-demon assured. “But how do we fight her?”

Suddenly, shadows swirled around everyone. Raven tried shooting at the shadows around her, but she disappeared within them. It was as if the shadows were some kind of goo, sticking to her and sucking her in. Scared, everyone began fighting the shadows, to no avail. One by one, each member of each team faded with the dark shadows. Artemis tried shooting her arrows, Zatanna used her magic, Stephanie and Starfire shot their powers. They all disappeared. Rocket faded away. Asami and Korra held onto each other, but the shadows surprisingly pulled them away, and engulfed the two lovers. Even Lauren tried to fight the best she can, but the shadows take her as well. Lara shot at the shadows with her arrows, hoping to protect Sam. She couldn’t. Adora quickly turned into She-Ra, and Catra clawed at the darkness. Both disappeared. Max and Chloe gripped onto each other, trying their damndest to stay together. Just like the others, though, they were ripped from each other’s arms and disappeared.

 

 

Stephanie blinked open her eyes, removing her arms from her face. Gasping, she gazed in awe when she witnessed her family right in front of her. Her mother was cooking dinner, and her father was helping her. Stephanie’s little brother, Danny, acted like he was helping, but he was still too young to do much. His arms, however, still reached high, signaling to the food on the counter.

“After dinner, sweetie!” Stephanie’s mother chuckled, stirring something in a large orange popcorn bowl.

“Aw, dear,” her father smiled softly. “Let him have a small bite.”

“You’re such a bad influence on both of us,” the woman grinned, grabbing a chopped piece of chicken and handed it to the eager Danny, who gulped it in a single bite. He smiled brightly and put his hands in the air, imitating a grabbing motion.

“More tchiten!” Danny demanded. “Tchiten gwood!”

“You’ll have a lot at din-din, okay honey?” The mother bent down, patting Danny’s head. The child pouted, crossing his arms and sticking out his lips. Both parents laughed at this, making young Danny giggle as well.

Stephanie blinked, feeling tears in her eyes. She dropped down on her knees, staring wide eyed at the scene playing out in front of her.

“I can take you there.” Luna rumbled from somewhere in her shadows. “I can bring your family back.”

“They’re dead, you can’t.” Stephanie barely whispered out hollowly

“Oh, I can’t?” Luna challenged. With a flick of a shadow, the kitchen faded away like dust being blown off of a countertop. Now all that remained was her family.

“Mom…?” Stephanie croaked.

“Oh, Stephanie,” her mom sighed. “I’ll always love you.” She smiled with tears in her eyes, but then the tears suddenly turned into blood. Her eyes rolled back and her body became gray and decomposed. Her father and brother seemed to take the same form. Gasping in shock and horror, Stephanie stood quickly and backed away, full of fear. Her mother’s mouth opened in a twisted grin.

“But,” she sneered, her voice raspy and sounding demonic, echoing within the darkness. “Will you still love _me_?”

 

 

Grunting, Lara opened her eyes, only to find Roth standing above her.

“Nngh… Roth?” Lara breathed. The older man held his hand out to her, smiling. Lara gratefully accepted it and stood with his help. Turning, Roth looked behind him, revealing Lara’s crew throughout the years.

Reyes waved at her first, gaining the attention from the rest of them all. Grimm grinned and gave Lara thumbs up. Alex pushed his glasses up and smiled. The adventurous woman looked over and saw even more people. Jonah was there, accompanied by Sam, Jacob, Sofia, Unuratu, and Etzli.

“Jonah!” Lara breathed, running up to hug him. He felt so real, so warm. His arms wrapped around his best friend, smiling as well. Letting go, Lara ran over to hug Sam, only to find that she was freezing cold. “Sam?” She asked, worried.

“Lara… I’m so cold… Please help me…” Sam’s echo-y voice traveled to Lara’s ears. Sam seemed to float away from Lara, making the adventurer’s blood run cold.

“Sam!” Lara screeched, trying to grab her, to no avail. Sam seemed as if she kept getting farther and farther away from Lara’s grasp.

“Hurry up, Lara. Time is running out.” Luna chuckled ominously.

“Who are you?” The brunette demanded, reaching for her gun. She widened her eyes; her weapons were gone. Quickly scanning around her, she saw that all of her friends were gone as well, including Sam. “Sam!” She screamed desperately. Angry and afraid, Lara whipped around in every direction. “Where are you, you bastard?”

“You want ‘bastard’? I’ll give you ‘bastard’!” Luna growled. Her shadows flickered and suddenly, all of Lara’s enemies came rushing out of nowhere with weapons. It seemed as though all of Trinity came after her. Scared, Lara ran as fast as she could in the other direction, refusing to look back. Tears flung out of her eyes as she thought about the potential danger that Sam could be in, but she knew if she looked back, Trinity would claim her, so she did the only thing she could.

She kept running.

 

 

“Chloe…?” Max breathed, holding herself up with her hands. She looked around, horrified as she saw Mark Jefferson in front of her, possessing a syringe. He smirked, looking down at the brunette. Anxiety instantly filled her, forcing her to quickly stand and run. To where, she didn’t know. Just away from him, _anywhere_ but him. Max kept running, but her surroundings were nothing but blackness. She didn’t know how long she kept running until she collapsed on the pitch black ground. Max sobbed, choking on air and tears and anxiety and fear. Why was he back? Chloe killed him! Right? Or was that another cruel nightmare of hers?

“He’s not here, he’s not here…” Max began chanting, curling in on herself. “He’s not here.”

“You fool.” Sneered Jefferson. “I am always watching you.”

Max was struck with fear and hatred, forcing her body to shut down on itself. Sobbing, she could only call out Chloe’s name.

 

 

A sudden burst of light blinded everyone, causing them to block their vision with their arms for protection. They widened their eyes, realizing they were all back together in the darkness, with Starfire lighting up her powers again. Stephanie looked absolutely pissed and terrified all at once, activating her powers and screaming, shoving everyone into a portal.

Everything went dark.

 

 

“What the fuck just happened?” Chloe mumbled shakily, helping Max stand up. Everyone had disappeared from the Multiverse Field only to reappear in the common room of Titan’s Tower. Lara and Sam were curious, while Korra and Asami stuck close together, full of fear. Adora wielded her sword and Catra unleashed her claws. Raven explained to them that there was nothing to fear; it was simply her home. Beside the group, Stephanie panted, her hands on her knees. She trembled, making the Titans worry. Suddenly, she collapsed. Almost instantly, Raven was by her side.

“She’s alright, just exhausted from overusing her powers. _Again_.” Raven glared at her friend. Stephanie grinned weakly at her, chuckling.

“It’s almost as if I’m not the only one who does it. _Constantly_.” The blue-eyed woman retorted playfully.

“Ugh, shut up.” Raven looked away from her.

“Where are we?” Sam asked, holding onto Lara’s arm.

“Our home.”

Everyone turned and saw a group of men, staring at them skeptically. Robin, leader of the Teen Titans, had spoken. Starfire gasped.

“Robin!” She glowed, flying towards him and hugging him.

“Hey, Star.” Robin greeted, holding her. “Where were you guys?”

“In Hell.” Raven answered, helping Stephanie stand.

“Stephanie!” Cyborg shouted. Raven held a hand out to stop him from coming any closer.

“She’ll be fine. She just needs rest.” Raven explained, taking note of Cyborg’s concerned yet confused gaze. The robotic man just nodded.

Slowly, each member of The Team met back up with their friends; Rocket and Aqualad, M’gann and Connor, Artemis and Wally, Zatanna and Dick.

“Jonah!” Lara breathed, running to hug him. He returned the hug and kissed the top of her head.

“I’m so glad you’re safe, my little bird.” He murmured. “How’s Sam?”

“Alive,” Lara let go of her friend, holding her hand out behind her for Sam. The brunette grabbed it and walked closer. “She’s safe, that’s all I care about right now.” Sam smiled, blushing slightly, and leaned to kiss Lara’s cheek. The adventurous woman smiled and blushed, closing one eye slightly when her girlfriend kissed her.

Beast Boy had greeted M’gann before walking over to Raven, Stephanie, and Cyborg. The black haired woman shakily let go of Raven just to collapse into her boyfriend’s arms.

“Stephanie?” Cyborg murmured. “What happened to you?”

“I…” Stephanie choked on sobs. “Luna… Luna’s back. She brought back my family.” At this, everyone stopped talking and turned to the young woman, surprised.

“Steph, babe,” Cyborg whispered. “Your family’s gone.”

“Not… not in that way.” She shook her head. Why can’t those images go away? “T-their corpses… Luna showed them to me. It was as if she was… taunting me. And-and… Danny…” Stephanie finally broke down, completely sobbing. Cyborg held her tightly, staring at Raven in horror.

“Stephanie…” Zatanna murmured. “I’m so sorry.”

“They were all I had… and Luna used that against me today.” Stephanie whimpered. “Rav… _We_ can’t kill her the way we killed Eclipse, since she has the power to trap us in complete darkness. How the hell are we gonna do this? She’s going to keep torturing all of us now until we figure out some way to take her down!” She wailed.

“We’ll figure it out.” Raven promised. “Right now, we need to rest. We’ll definitely need to share our rooms with everyone, so we need to figure that out first.” She glanced around, wondering who she’ll invite to her room. Her eyes narrowed.

“I can take Aqualad, Connor, and Jonah, if that’s cool with you guys?” Cyborg asked. They all nodded in confirmation. “Great!”

“Perhaps I can invite Korra, Asami, Catra, Adora, M’gann, and Rocket into mine?” Starfire suggested. “It is quite a large space. They would fit!”

“It could work.” Raven nodded. “Robin?”

“Dick can sleep in my room.” He answered.

“Haha, dick.” Chloe laughed. Max nudged her disapprovingly, though her eyebrow lifted at Robin’s embarrassed blush.

“Wally, Artemis, and Zatanna are welcome with me!” Beats Boy grinned.

“Okay, so that leaves me with a whole lot of people.” Raven grumbled. She expected to only have Stephanie, Max, and Chloe with her. Now, she had to deal with Lara, Sam, and Lauren. She had no idea who these other people were, which made her suspicious of them. Still, she couldn’t say no; everyone else had their hands full as well, why couldn’t she?

“Alright, everyone,” Robin cleared his throat, signaling for attention. “Get where you’re supposed to be, and we’ll all report back here in the morning. We have to be vigilant and attentive for the time being, but for tonight, just get some rest.” Everyone nodded, heading off into their rooms, accompanied by their friends.

Raven entered her bedroom, followed by Stephanie. The black haired woman glanced behind her when she realized the small group was staying behind.

“What’s wrong?” Stephanie asked the small group.

“How can we trust you people?” Lara mumbled, crossing her arms. Sam rested a hand on one of Lara’s arms delicately in sympathy, knowing exactly why the British woman had trust issues.

“ _You’re_ in _our_ home.” Raven stated, walking towards her. “Frankly, I don’t trust any of you. Max and Chloe I can trust since they’ve helped us in the past, but you three,“ She nodded towards Lara, Sam, and Lauren. “Cannot be trusted.”

“Oh, come on!” Lauren growled, angry. “I’ve known Stephanie since we were in middle school! How can you _not_ trust me?”

“Not once has she ever talked about you after all these years, and you suddenly appear?” Raven snapped back. “Azar, why am I the one with the problematic ‘guests’?” She mumbled under her breath.

“What the hell does it matter?” Chloe stepped in. “If they want to help stop this Luna bitch then let them stay! We’ll need all the help we can get at this point.”

“She’s got a point, Rav.” Stephanie said.

“Ugh, fine!” Raven sighed. “I can set up some pillows and blankets for all of you. If anyone tries anything funny, don’t forget: I’m the spawn of Satan and I can easily decimate all of you.” She glared at the group, growling out her final words. Everyone stared at her, shocked, but proceeded to her bedroom anyway.

Raven began to give the newcomers a couple pillows and blankets, with Stephanie helping to set them up around the room. Close to the door, Lara and Sam lied down and cuddled. When Stephanie asked out of curiosity why they were cuddling, Lara blew it off as they were trying to keep warm, despite Raven’s room being around seventy degrees. The black haired girl knew better, though, having had romantic feelings for women before.

“It’s okay, no need to feel embarrassed.” Stephanie whispered, trying to assure them. “I know how you feel about each other.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Lara flipped over, her lip out in a fake pout and her arms awkwardly crossed. Sam giggled, making the British woman blush and smile.

“Sure you don’t.” Stephanie grinned, sitting down to talk with them for a little longer.

Next to Raven’s bed, Max and Chloe lied down and they, too, cuddled together, not denying their relationship. The brunette clung onto her girlfriend, obvious fear in her eyes. Raven bent down to them and asked if Max was alright.

“Thought you didn’t care?” Chloe hissed. The half-demon flinched slightly at the retort.

“I meant that for the others.” She defended herself. “I know I can trust you two.” Chloe glared at her for another moment, blinking only once.

“No.” The punk finally answered Raven’s question. “We aren’t okay. We’ve both been through hell and back together. My father died, my best friend had left me right after, my ex _fucking_ _died_ by Nathan’s dirty hands, I was almost _raped_ by him, my step- _douche_ abused me, Max witnessed her friend jumping off of a building numerous times before saving her, Jeffer _fuck_ molested her, I died multiple times, we nearly let Arcadia Bay be destroyed, there was a weird shadow demon that nearly killed _all of us_ , and now there’s another _fucking_ shadow demon after our asses!” She breathed, realizing tears had fallen from her eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s just… been a lot.”

“It’s okay. I understand.” Raven whispered. “We’ve been through a lot as well. Stephanie…” She trailed off, glancing at her friend. “Never mind. It’s a story to tell only by her when she wants to. But without hurting anyone, let’s just say she knows what it’s like to have her world turned upside down and ruined by a psychopathic man.”

“God…” Max whispered, seemingly realizing exactly what Raven was talking about.

“She’s moving on slowly, but after what happened today, I doubt she’ll be her joyous self for quite some time.” Raven murmured sadly. She stood, walking over to her bed to sleep. Over by Lara and Sam, Stephanie glanced over at Raven, then to Max and Chloe. Sighing, she stood and walked over, then sat next to them and started to whisper.

“A few years ago, I was able to go on a tour to sing covers of songs I enjoyed.” She began. “A lot of stuff happened. I met a cab driver named James who was friends with my family before they got killed.” She shivered, remembering what had happened earlier that day. “I… I guess there was a shooter in the crowd, and he was aiming for me. But… James saw it and covered me, dying in my place.”

“Christ, does everyone have a depressing backstory?” Chloe breathed.

“That’s terrible and traumatic.” Max whispered. “Stephanie I… I’m so sorry.”

“I don’t know if Raven told you, or if you figured it out, but after a while I was in Chicago for my last go around.” Stephanie continued, staring blankly at the wall in front of her. Her eyes were glazed over and lidded, and instantly, Max and Chloe both recognized the look.

“I met with a man named Aaron Dubos. French dude. He was… extremely flirtatious, which, after a while, made me uncomfortable, especially when he followed me into my _fucking_ hotel room.” By this point, Stephanie had tears rolling down her cheeks, though her face didn’t change in the slightest. “He drugged me, then raped me, and left me alone. I had practically crawled out into the road and called the Titans for help. After they got there, Aaron presented himself and he… he had a gun. I used the last of my strength and power to put up a force field around my friends. They told me I actually… died… When I, uh, came to, I guess, Aaron had killed himself after seeing I was basically dead. Nothing bad has happened to me since then.” Stephanie paused, thinking for a moment. “Except for that abortion I had…”

“You had an abortion?” Max questioned. Immediately she regretted asking, her face red. “Shit, I’m sorry! It’s none of my business.

“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Stephanie gave her a small smile, trying to assure her that it wasn’t that big of a deal. “I had to. I barely survived the trauma it put on my body, and I wasn’t even pregnant for a month. Plus, it hurt Raven as well.” She murmured, looking over at her friend sadly. The gothic woman was lying in her bed, her blankets draped over her. “I can’t have a child of my own, simply because my body can’t handle it. It can’t handle the pressure, and neither can my powers. My body, though it is matured enough to handle a kid per say, the doctors said I can never conceive a child of my own due to a medical condition with my insides. Something about an autoimmune disorder. It… does upset me, but in reality, there’s truly nothing I can do to change that or help me conceive a baby, whether or not I want to. If I tried again, I run the risk of dying and the baby won’t have any chance at all. And if Raven ever died… I’d never forgive myself.” A few final tears ran down her face, but when she realized she was crying, she hastily wiped them away.

“That’s upsetting.” Chloe whispered. “Does anyone else know?”

“The Titans do, the Team doesn’t, and obviously the newcomers know nothing about me.” Stephanie answered. “Please, don’t spread this around to anyone else. I’ll tell them on my own time.”

“Of course,” Max smiled, understanding. “It’s not our story to share, it’s yours.”

“Thank you.” The black haired woman breathed out a sigh of relief, smiling for the first time that day.

Standing up, Stephanie went over to Lauren, who was huddled in on herself on the floor against the wall farthest from everyone else. Her legs were practically attached to her chest, with her arms around them in comfort. Her light teal eyes stared down at her feet, though she could see nothing. Frowning, Stephanie bent down to touch her friend’s shoulder, careful not to startle her.

“I know you’re there.” Lauren whispered, startling Stephanie instead. “Don’t try to be sneaky around me, especially after I told you what happened.”

“I-I’m sorry.” Stephanie apologized, sitting cross-legged in front of her. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“I know.” Lauren breathed. “I overheard you. Sorry.” She apologized. Stephanie widened her eyes, and then narrowed them in slight anger.

“That wasn’t for you to know.” Stephanie growled slightly. Lauren glared at her.

“So you tell strangers, but not your best friend?” Lauren snapped back. Stephanie’s face turned red in anger. Clearly, she was pissed.

“You _left_ me!” Stephanie hissed, making Lauren flinch back, eyes wide. “You didn’t bother helping me when I was at my lowest point. And, goddamn it, Lauren, _I was in love with you_!” Everyone widened their eyes and stared at the two arguing women, shocked. Even Raven’s eyes were wide with surprise. Stephanie’s voice lowered into a pained whisper. “I loved you… and you hurt me. You have no idea how much I’ve missed you for all these years, and suddenly you pop back in my life with no warning? And purposely overhear private information about me that I wasn’t ready to share with you? Not the mention arguing with my friends that you are to be trusted when I don’t even think _I_ can trust you!” Warm, angry tears slid down her cheeks as she stared at the ground, her hair covering her face.

“Steph-“

“Get out.” The black haired woman barely whispered, her voice cracking ever so slightly.

“Stephanie, maybe you shouldn’t-” Raven began, sitting up on her bed, but was ultimately cut off by her friend.

 _“Get out!”_ Stephanie snarled, accidentally scaring the other girls. Lauren, both upset and furious, stood and walked out of the room. The awkward atmosphere in the room stayed.

“Stephanie…” Max whispered.

“I’m sorry.” The blue-eyed girl whimpered, her hands curled into her face. “I’m sorry.”

“If she betrayed you, it isn’t your fault.” Chloe told her.

“No, I… I’m sorry I reacted like that.” She murmured, curling into a ball.

“Steph-“

“Raven, please.” Stephanie turned around to face the group, her eyes red and tired. “I just want to sleep.”

“Okay.” Raven nodded, understanding. She patted the empty side of her bed, inviting Stephanie over. The young woman reluctantly agreed, sliding under the covers with her friend. Despite the outburst Stephanie had, she quickly fell asleep, and so did the others.

Unbeknownst to them all, Lauren stood outside the door, arms crossed and quietly crying.


End file.
